1. Field of the Invention
In general, the present invention relates to toy objects that are spring biased in an expanded configuration, yet can be temporarily configured into a collapsed configuration. More particularly, the present invention relates to thrown toy objects, such as balls, that can be temporarily pressed into a collapsed configuration, wherein the thrown toy pops back into an expanded configuration a short time later. The present invention also relates to the method of manufacturing such toy objects.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art is replete with various types of toys that are intended to be thrown. Prominent among such toys are balls and discs. It therefore is not surprising that toy manufacturers eventually combined the features of a ball and a disc into a single throwing toy.
It is for this reason that collapsible ball throwing toys were first introduced into the toy market. Collapsible ball throwing toys are balls, or similar spherically shaped objects, that are comprised of an upper hemisphere and a lower hemisphere. The upper hemisphere and the lower hemisphere are joined together with hinged connections along a common equatorial joint. Due to the hinged connections between the upper hemisphere and the lower hemisphere, the upper and lower hemispheres of the ball can be collapsed flat against each other. When the upper and the lower hemispheres of the toy are collapsed against each other, the toy has the general configuration of a disc. Accordingly, the collapsible ball throwing toy can be configured as either a ball or as a disc, depending upon whether or not the toy is compressed.
As the upper and lower hemispheres of the toy are collapsed into a flat configuration, the diameters of the hemispheres expand. To accommodate this expansion, the upper and lower hemispheres of the toy are slotted. When the toy is fully expanded into its ball shape, the slots are closed and the toy has a continuous external surface. However, when the toy is flattened into a disc, the slots open and expand, giving the disc a daisy configuration. A typical daisy configuration of a collapsible ball throwing toy can be seen by referencing U.S. Patent No. Des 434,457 to Goldman, entitled Collapsible Toy.
In the prior art, collapsible ball throwing toys typically have some sort of biasing element that biases the collapsible ball throwing toy into its expanded, ball-like configuration. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,815 to Goldman, entitled Pop-Open Throwing Toy With Controllable Opening Delay And Method Of Operating Same, a collapsible ball throwing toy is shown that has an internal coil spring. The coil spring biases apart the upper and lower hemispheres of the toy. The collapsible ball throwing toy can be temporarily configured like a disc by compressing the internal coil spring and resisting the bias of the coil spring with a momentary suction cup connection between the upper and lower hemispheres. As soon as the momentary suction cup connection fails, the internal coil spring pops the collapsible ball throwing toy back into its expanded ball-like configuration.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,955,841 to Pastrano, entitled Disc-Shaped Throwing Toy, a collapsible ball throwing toy is disclosed. The collapsible ball throwing toy is shaped like a polyhedron. The collapsible ball throwing toy has an upper and lower hemisphere joined with a hinged connection along an equatorial joint. An elastic element is provided within the polyhedron that biases it into a generally spherical shape. When compressed, the hemispheres flatten along lines in the polyhedral pattern and expand at the equatorial joint. Due to the hinged connection at the equatorial joint, the upper and lower hemispheres can fold flat against each other. However, once a compressing force is removed, internal elastic element causes both hemispheres to slowly return to their expanded shapes. As such, the collapsible ball throwing device can be flattened and thrown. After being thrown, the collapsible ball throwing device slowly returns to its expanded spherical shape. This prior art design, therefore, lacks the desired sudden transition between its collapsed condition and its expanded condition that other prior art versions of the collapsible ball throwing toy embody.
In the manufacturing of prior art collapsible ball throwing toys, one of the controlling costs is how to form the biasing mechanism that biases the toy into its expanded form. If a coil spring is used, there is the cost of the coil spring and the configurations needed to retain the coil spring. Furthermore, there is the concern that coil springs present a pinching hazard to the fingers of children as they are being compressed. If an elastic element is attached to shell of the collapsible ball throwing toy for use as the biasing mechanism, a complicated shell configuration must be used that greatly increases the costs involved in tooling and assembling the toy.
Furthermore, it is desirable that the collapsible ball throwing toy suddenly pop between its flat configuration and its expanded configuration. The collapsible ball throwing toy must therefore have a strong biasing mechanism and an equally strong temporary connecting mechanism that temporarily resists the biasing mechanism. However, the biasing mechanism cannot present a pinching hazard, nor can it be disrupted by dirt and debris that might find its way into the collapsible ball.
A need therefore exists for a collapsible ball throwing toy that can be simplified in its construction so that it can be manufactured less expensively and operate better than prior art configurations. This need is met by the present invention as described and claimed below.